Guatemala Farmers Block Roads
Guatemala, - Thousands of farmers have
blocked roads in 16 points of Guatemala,
with a strong police reaction in at least
one of them.
According to press reports, National Civil
Police members used tear gas against
demonstrators in El Zarco, in the
southwestern Retalhuleu department, while
protesters reacted by throwing sticks and
stones, injuring at least seven police
officers.
These actions throughout the country have
been organized by the Farmer Development
Committee to demand attention from the
government to meet demands made previously,
including an annual subsidy to small
producers, the promotion of land reform and
the application of justice for an event in
2004, when there was a violent eviction in
Retalhuleu, killing nine people and wounding
another 24.
A delegation of the Committee is currently
in the capital waiting for President Alvaro
Colom to receive them and commit to meet
their demands.
Groups of demonstrators have blocked some
areas in the departments of San Marcos,
Quetzaltenango, Retalhuleu, Suchitepequez,
Escuintla, Alta Verapaz, Zacapa, El Progreso,
Peten, Solola, Totonicapan and Santa Rosa,
according to reports.
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